6 Reasons You Should Improve Your Office Coffee

Article by Roseanne Ganley21st August 2018

The coffee break is integral part of office culture in the UK and around the world. The Scandinavians call it Fika; in Latin America people take a mid-afternoon Merienda and in Ethiopia there is a special coffee ceremony called Buna Tetu, which takes 3 hours to prepare and takes place three times per day!

We believe that coffee is the ultimate work friend, by your side whatever mood you’re in. If you feel tired or groggy, coffee will perk you up. If you skipped breakfast, a cappuccino and biscuit will probably keep you going until lunch. If you’re feeling the pressure, a sweet latte might just lighten your mood. Where would we be without it?!

But do your staff complain about the coffee at your workplace? Does your coffee provision tell your visitors that you’re stuck in the 90’s? A reliable, commercial bean to cup coffee machine is a friend that few workplaces can afford to be without. It’ll require investment, but you’ll reap the benefits for a long time to come. Still not convinced? Read on for our top 6 reasons to improve your office coffee!

Coffee is an inexpensive office perk

Unlimited, fresh coffee is a perk few could resist and for a candidate with more than one job offer on the table, could well tip the balance in your favour. Plus, it’ll cost you a lot less to provide than private medical cover or an onsite gym! If the idea of offering ‘unlimited’ coffee strikes you with fear, worry not – the average Brit consumes 2 cups of coffee per day (although this is rising!) Commercial Bean to Cup coffee machines can be good fun to use, are interesting objects in their own right and will let your employees know that you care about their welfare and wellbeing.

Caffeine Boosts Productivity

We all know that caffeine causes spikes in energy, alertness and productivity. There have been numerous studies on the topic, showing that coffee helps us to learn new things more quickly, enhances our memory function, improves problem solving ability and even makes us more creative. It doesn’t exactly wake us up but suppresses the chemical in our brains that makes us sleepy, keeping us awake. The world of sport has woken up to the stimulating effects of caffeine, with many gym goers even drinking espresso and Nitro Cold Brew before a work out for a better performance. Offering fresh coffee at work? We make it a no-brainer!

Breaks are essential for a healthier workplace

People are not machines, we need regular breaks in order to pause and reset ourselves. The benefits of having good coffee in the workplace reach far beyond the coffee itself. The coffee break is like a ritual, with the coffee providing a framework and regular activity and purpose for staff to meet. In a recent study carried out by Pernille S Stroebaek at the University of Copenhagen, it was discovered that spontaneous coffee breaks allowed workers to cope with the stress of heavy workloads communally, allowing workers to support one another and form personal bonds. Stroebaek actually wrote ‘My advice would be to put up coffee machines in corners and corridors of the workplace.’ So, you don’t have to take our word for it!

Great coffee will stop staff leaving site

Good quality coffee from a bean to cup coffee machine will prevent staff leaving the office to buy it elsewhere. We are all exposed to good quality, fresh coffee everywhere we go now, with many of us having pod machines in our homes too. As people become accustomed to fresh coffee, they become more inclined to travel to find it. This could mean people leaving your workplace to buy coffee. Given the time it takes to put on a coat, leave the office, stand in a queue, walk back and then to get their mind back into the task they were working on, you could be losing 30 minutes of your staff’s time every time they go for coffee. When you do the sums, can you afford not to source a commercial coffee machine for your staff?

There could be physical health benefits

Most of us have now heard that coffee is rich in antioxidants. But there is a growing body of research to suggest that it could have other health benefits too. We need to be very careful here as the research is broad and there is of course no shortcut to good health. However, research has shown links to reduced risk of heart disease, reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and depression. Coffee needs to be consumed as part of a healthy lifestyle but making good quality coffee available to staff, preferably without sugary treats on the side could be a great step in the right direction.

Good coffee makes people happy

In spite of all the science about why coffee is good for us, most of drink coffee because of how it makes us feel. We drink it because we enjoy the taste and the sensation we experience when we drink coffee. In the simplest way possible, providing staff with good quality coffee is an easy way to give them something that they want and that will make them happy. Happy staff are likely to be more motivated, give better service to customers and positively impact upon others around them.